Flicker in My Life
by Fantasy Cat
Summary: NOW COMPLETED! The love story that had everyone talking! Can Bijou get Boss to come home or will he leave her forever! I have some final notes too.
1. Chapter One

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Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disclaimer: How could I own such cute furries?! J 

Chapter One

"Sorry we can't take you with us, but you know that Aunt Fifi's allergic to hamsters!" Poor Bijou would be left alone for the weekend while Maria and her family spent some time with Aunt Fifi who was going to be in town for a short while. She was treating the family with a small weekend trip to Tokyo.

"Maria. Did you made sure that Bijou has enough food for two days?" Her mom called from downstairs.

"Oui, Mama." Maria called back. She finished packing her petite suitcase then went to Bijou. "Au Revoir, Bijou." '_Don't worry about me_' thought Bijou. '_Perhaps now, I can spend more time at the clubhouse_'.

That day at the clubhouse was pretty normal as usual. Howdy and Dexter bickered over Pashmina. Boss seemed to blush as he was near Bijou. And Hamtaro brought life to their adventures. Today, Maxwell thought the Ham-Hams about Tokyo and other major world cities in geography class*.

And when all is said and done…

'_Bijou said that she could stay later today. Perhaps I can offer for her to share some seed dinner with me', _thought Boss. He was pretty nervous about it but he slowly cautious began to approach Bijou hanging out with Hamtaro and Oxnard on the couch. And before she was able to notice Boss arriving…

"Hey Bijou! Would you like for me to walk you home tonight?!" Hamtaro asked Bijou with enthusiasm. Boss's sad face showed up all red-cheeked without anyone noticing.

"Why Hamtaro," said Bijou. "I would be delighted."

"I can walk you home…too?" asked Oxnard shyly.

"Why not?" said Hamtaro. "We're neighbors after all."

"Darn it, why didn't I think of that?' thought Boss depressingly.

Bijou strolled with Hamtaro and Oxnard siding (Ala. _Wizard of Oz_). After Bijou bid farewell, Hamtaro and Oxnard decided to play sunflower seed chase** all the way back to their respective houses.

Bijou took in for the night early. As she was sleeping, the basement space heater began to spread flames they were heading up the stairs to the second floor.

Boss was running low on food and Snoozer's growling stomach demanded that some food be found. Sometimes he'll walk by Bijou's and leave a heavy sigh. But before he even got there his nose caught a strange scent. "Heff, heff" It was a nasty smell. "Hey that's smoke…It's coming from Bijou's!!!" He rushed over to the front gate of the house. Smoke and flames could be seen on the first floor and they were climbing.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Boss rushed across the front yard and around the side of the side. He quickly climbed the tree that led to Maria's window. He could Bijou still asleep in her cage.

"Hey, Bijou." Boss was yelling outside but it was so faint from Bijou's ears. Even banging on the window didn't help. "How do I get inside?" Boss panickly thought. The only thing he had on his hamster was the shovel he always carried. He began poking the sharp point of his shovel at the window glass hoping to break a portion of the window. He worked with all of his muscle and fortunately he was the biggest of the Ham-Hams in muscle.

The combination of noise and smell woke Bijou from her sleep. The first thing she noticed was Boss trying to break the window.

"Boss?! What do you think you're doing?! Burglarizing my cage?!!!!!" Bijou was about filled up with rage when she caught the scent of smoke. She looked over to the opened bedroom door and saw moving shadows of flames. The flames slowly found their way into the bedroom and would soon spread all over the room. The air was getting hotter as more flames found their way into the bedroom. The heat became too much for her as she passed out in her own cage.

"BIJOU!!!" Boss panicked. He was almost done, but there was no time. He hoped to run through the cracks he made that have weakened the glass.

It hurt a little but Boss had no time to feel pain. He unlatched the door and rushed inside of Bijou's cage. The flames in the room were increasing. With a passed out Bijou in his arms Boss rushed over to the cage door. His nervousness of the current situation gave him a few seconds trouble with the cage door. He finally got out. And with no seconds thoughts he leaped onto the branch still carrying Bijou. By now the flames began consumption of the entire bedroom. When Boss climbed down the tree Bijou was awaken by the cold air. Boss took notice as he looked into her eyes.

"Come on, Bijou. Let's get out of here."

As the two left the front yard, the fire department had already arrived to put out the flames.

**__**

*Remember that episode where the Hams decided to form their own school w/ Maxwell as teacher?

**I have no idea…

I'm not on caffeine, it's this blasted yogurt drink!!!

You-know-what-I-want-and-it-ain't-no-lie. Review! Review! Review!


	2. Chapter Two

Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disc: You silly willys!

Chapter Two

A loud snore shook the room that Bijou was sleeping in. She had only got about an hour two hours of sleep tops when her half awaked eyes began to realize that she wasn't where she normally was. 

"Goodness! Where am I?" She began to panic until her blurry vision began to clear up and she was looking over at the very loud Snoozer. "Oh, but how did I get here?"

That question would be answered as soon as Boss suddenly entered the room.

"SNOOZER QUIT SNORING SO LOUD! I CAN HEAR YOU FROM ALL THE WAY OUTSIDE! YOU WAKE UP BI-jou." Boss hesitated for a minute when he saw Bijou awake. "Oh…I'm sorry Bijou, I must've forgotten that Snoozer was sleeping in here."

"That iz all right," said Bijou. "But I would like to know. How did I get to the ze clubhouse in the middle of the night."

"You mean you can't remember?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Well, I dunno how to tell you this, Bijou. But…your house caught on fire."

"It what?"

"It caught on fire. I was passing by and saw the smoke so I knew that I…had to rescue you," Boss said as he began to blush.

"Oh my! I could've burrrned! I hope Maria knows what haz happiened to ze house. Perhaps she will come home early. I must geet back to ze house."

Bijou jumped up from the bed and began her rush to the door but Boss felt inclined to slow her down.

"Whoa, wait! She's on vacation isn't she?"

"Oui?" responded Bijou.

"And Tokyo is far away from here isn't it?"

"Well, if I can remember Maxwell's lesson. He says that it is only te-."

"Well that's not how I remember it, Bijou. Uh besides, it's very cold outside. Are you sure that you want to hurry out in this freezing weather?"

"I guess you are right. Perhaps I shall wait till morning?"

"Of course. You just go back to sleep in here. I'll kick Snoozer out and we'll all have a big breakfast in the morning."

"Aww. That would be…" Bijou began to fall to sleep in the bed.

As Boss dragged the sleepy Snoozer out of the bedroom, Boss began giggling his usual blush-giggle. J 

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Thank you for your patience fellow story fans! I'm slowly making progress on thinking up ideas for this story. Not only that, I'm more calm about my classes this semester despite the small lettered textbooks and the insane time commitment. When I will put up Chapter 3 depends on how many reviews. Since not much has happened in this chapter, you should expect a new and exciting one by next week. Okie doke!


	3. Chapter Three

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Thanks to my reviewers and such. I know I said that I would have something done by MLK weekend. My profile should explain everything though.

Disc: Me no own.

Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Chapter Three

Unknowingly to Boss, dawn had already passed. Most of the hamsters were already at the clubhouse preparing for a new day.

"Hey Boss…Boss…you awake," Hamtaro said as he tried to wake the sleeping Boss.

"HEY BOSS! YOU AWAKE?!" yelled out Oxnard.

"AHHHHHH!" Boss woke up completely stirred. "I am now!"

"And about time two," said Howdy. "I never knew of any other hamsters beside Snoozer and Elder Ham that enjoy sleeping in the day."

Boss was still half-awake. The events of last night were a complete blank. "Must've (yawn) been something I did last night."

"Well, what happened?" asked Maxwell.

Boss tried to recollect some memory as he was about to explain, "Well, Bijou- (gasp) Bijou!" Boss rush over to the room where he put Bijou to sleep. The other confused hamsters followed him. He opened the door, but there was no Bijou within the room.

"Bijou? Bijou?!" He scrambled all over the room flipping over the mattresses, opening drawers and doors until Boss grew weary and was panting. "She must've went back to the house. I'll be right back!"

Boss rushed through the crowd of confused hamsters and out the front. Boss could hear the faint sound of Howdy's voice yelling, "But it's below freezing outside!" But Boss seemed to care less about that.

~*~*~*~*~

He found her exactly where he knew she would be she was on the front lawn surveying the damage. It seemed to be quite and empty. A few people, who usually ran errands by and by the house everyday, were now stopping by the house to gasp at the damage. A little less than half of the house remained unburned and standing, but it was very smoking. In fact, when Boss found her she was shivering from the cold and coughing from the smoke that still hung around.

"Bijou," cried out Boss as he ran up to her. "You shouldn't be outside now. It's too cold! Here, I brought a blanket since you were out here." Boss offered her the wool blanket he had with him.

"Oh…merci." Boss didn't like the sound of Bijou's voice.

"What's wrong, Bijou?"

"What!" Bijou said with a shock. _(She's standing in front of her burnt down home, you should know what's wrong!) _Actually, Bijou was startled cuz her mind was wandering off.

"UH I MEANT BESIDES THE FIRE LAST NIGHT!" Boss hurriedly said avoiding to sound stupid in front of her.

"I don't undestand, Marie should be here."

"Well, you know they maybe stuck in traffic somewhere."

"Oui, I'm sure they will be home something today," said Bijou. "That iz why I must stay here and wait for them-ACHOO!" She nearly sneezed on Boss _(hamster cooties!)._

"Bijou, you're looking puffed up! We better get to someplace warm and quick!" Boss panickly replied.

"Oh! You are right. I'm so dizzy!" Bijou started to walk but nearly fell and Boss had to hold her back up. Her face was turning red and puffy! "I don't think I can't make it all ze way to ze clubhouse. Iz too far for moi." 

Boss thought for a second till he came up with an idea. "I know a place that's really close. We can get ya warmed up and fed in no time. Boss shyly and nervously wrapped one arm around Bijou to keep her warm and upright as they made a short walk around the corner and into a nearby hole in the ground.


	4. Chapter Four

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A/N: This chapter is very long compared to my others. It looks better to not have this spit into two chapters so pardon my scatterbrain writing and just enjoy.

Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Chapter Four

Disc: If you know who they are, then someone else owns them.

Back at the clubhouse, the Ham-Hams were left utterly confused. And then, Pashmina came in. She was warmly dress in a pink winter set (to match her scarf). Penelope followed suit with extra layers over her.

"Didn't you hear what happened? Bijou's house burned down."

All the Hams were in complete shock at the news. "Burned down?!" Oxnard cried. "You mean ashes and soot burned down?!"

"I just hope she got out okay. Penelope and I passed by the house and we were both in shock. We were looking for her a while and when we couldn't find here, we thought she would be here."

"You don't think…" said Panda.

"OH BIJOU!" cried Oxnard as tears came out of his eyes like waterfalls.

"Pull yourselves together, gang," said Hamtaro. "I just know that Bijou had to have made it out. Why don't we go the house and search for her again."

"And what about Boss," asked Howdy.

"We'll leave him a note. Knowing Boss, he'll be just as worried about Bijou as we are to come and find us."

"We better get going before the snow starts to hit," said Maxwell.

"Yeah! Let's go!" cried the Hams-Hams as they set to venture out in cold weather.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Boss was holding on to Bijou as they were traveling underground. Unlike the tunnels to the clubhouse, the tunnels that the two were traveling were either too sooty or muddy and Bijou found it rather uncomfortable.

"We're here," said Boss. They came upon a badly made wooden door, and Boss banged on it. It sounds as if some party was going on inside according to Bijou's ears.

"Password," called a voice from behind the door.

"Now, let's see…I remember this one, Boss thought long and hard. "Oh yeah, I remember now…'muck hamster'" The door open and a gruff pinkish female hamster greeted the twosome in.

"Well, Boss. Long time no see. I see you got yourself a girl hamster there, but you know our policy."

"Yeah I know, Myra, but this is what you call…well…an emergency. My Bijou here needs some medical attention and this was the closest place to go. Cant you let it slide, just this once?"

"Well, okay, but only because we've all been missin' ya for a while. Bring her on back and she can rest in the guest room for a bit." Myra waved for Boss and Bijou to follow her. 

Through the large darkened room they traveled hamsters were at tables playing cards and pool a bar was off to the side where a hamster was serving snacks. As they walked through the place, all the gruff and dirty looking hamsters seemed to stare, moreso at Bijou.

"What kind of place iz thiz, Boss?"

"It's a club. You know kind of like the clubhouse except it's strictly for field and wandering hams. But Myra's sweet enough to let ya get some rest here."

They arrived in the small back room. Only a bed and a badly made table with a light on top occupied the room. Boss took Bijou to the bed. Myra passed Boss a blanket and he took the liberty of shyly tucking Bijou in. "Why don't I make you some sunflower soup while you're resting," Myra said to the dozing Bijou. "And Boss, you can treat yourself to a drink? You can tell Pocko it's on the house."

"Thank you Myra. I should let Bijou rest for a while," said Boss as he slowly progressed out. He took one last look at poor Bijou who was already falling asleep. "Get better Bijou," he whispered.

"Hey Boss man! What can I get for my old buddy?" asked Pocko, the club bartender.

"Sunflower seed schnapps for starters," said a quiet Boss, even though he hasn't seen these old friends of his in a while. "You bet," said Pocko.

Boss was scratching at the edge of the old bar table while waiting for his drink. Everything was made of scarp bark and mulch so it didn't matter if any damage was done to the place.

"A girl hamster Boss?" said a familiar yet unknown voice that took his place at the bar next to Boss. "And a white one too."

"Not so color blind anymore aren't we, Chief?" said Boss in a gruff voice.

"Come on, every hamster in this club can tell the difference between a field and a sophisticated. You think you can pass off some white hamster with neat fur and blue ribbons as a field hamster?"

"Myra said she could come in. She's too sick to be outside."

"Want something, Chief" asked Pocko as he handed Boss his sunflower seed schnapps.

"Berry spirit," said Chief. He wanted to turn his conversation back to Boss. "Word has it you turned your place into a clubhouse for house hams."

"It's true," Boss took a sip of his schnapps. "It's all fair leadership as long as they don't mess up the place."

"So, you're trying to pass yourself off as a house ham huh? Is that how you got the white one? I gotta admit the guys at the poker table and I think she's a damn looker."

"She's not my girlfriend," said Boss. "I wish she was though," he muttered hoping that chief couldn't hear but he did.

"Ha! Man Boss you think that white puff is gonna fall for you, Boss."

"That's not nice to call her a white puff!"

"I know, sorry. My point is any house ham of high class like her we'll never be impressed with wanting some field ham like you or me. Maybe if she was of a normal ham class, but man, you're gonna have to take tons of ham baths and get tons of ham vaccines to get to that girl's heart." 

Boss refused to look up at him. Pocko came by with Chief's Berry Spirit and he took his sips. Boss looked at his glass to see that he only drank 1-2 sips of his.

"I'm going to check on Bijou," said Boss as he left the bar. He wanted to check on her, but he also wanted to get far away from Chief.

As he walked toward the back of the club…

"Hey, Boss. Your girl ham's hot!" yelled a field hamster from the pool table. Some of the hams in the bar laughed, hollered, and/or whistled. 

"Shut up!" yelled Boss as he opened the door to the room.


	5. Chapter Five

**_I think this one's pretty long a chapter too. Sorry about the delay. I gots no idea that I haven't updated this here storae in ova a month! heeheehee_******

**Flicker in my Life**   
**By Fantasy Cat**   
**Disc: Wanna know the most difficult way to know what I own? Watch all 52 episodes of Hamtaro and write down every character on a list. That's the "I don't own" list.**   
**Chapter Five**   
**** ****

All of the other Hams-Hams raced over to where Maria's house was half standing. There was alot of damage done to it. Only one fire truck was still there to clean off any smoke. "It's horrible," said Maxwell. "But where's Bijou?" said Sandy as she clung to Maxwell. 

A car hurriedly arrived infront of the damaged house. Maria rushed out with a bang in complete shock. Her parents approached the remaining firemen to gang closure on what happened. But Maria was crying. Her mother returned to Maria. "I'm afraid it was the space heater in the laundry room." 

"It seems fixable," said Maria's father as she came up to them. "But we're gonna need a place to stay until we get everything back together." He noticed that Maria was on the verge of tears. Her mother held her close. "Oh honey, what's the matter?" 

"It's Bijou, mama!" Maria sobbed. "My whole room is destroyed and...Bijou!" 

"We're so sorry," said Maria's father and he joined in with the hug. All the Ham-Hams were hugging too for the lost of their close companion. Hamtaro looked over at the human family in silence. 

"Bijou..." 

* * *

  
Boss sat in a corner to watch Bijou rest. Time was speeding into the darkness of sunset outside. All the time while Bijou was sleeping, Boss contemplated on everyone he was told by his former companions. 

_'Chief is right. I don't deserve her. All this time I've been trying too hard to get her to like me, and even that doesn't impress her. I've seen the way she looks at that Hamtaro. But how can I blame him? He's worthy of her. Bijou deserves the fine house class. She never saw anything in a gruff field hamster like me and she never will. Even my name can't bring anyone to like me for me. Sigh. I've wasted my whole life. Making one lie after another to impress people. Having a temper to prove myself. I never proved anything.'___

When Bijou started to open her eyes, it was a sign that soon she'll probably have to go home. Myra loaned Bijou a heavy pink sweater to beat the cold when they left the club. The two hamsters came up to the surface. The sky was nighttime blue and the moon and stars shone out to their fullest. The weather was slightly warmer than it was today. The cool breeze that tickled their whiskers was an omen that Spring would come soon. 

They were walking through the park far opposite of where the Ham-Ham clubhouse resided underground. All in all, it was the most romantic setting ever imagined if only Boss wasn't so depressed. 

"Iz something de matter, Boss?" asked Bijou breaking the silence of the night. "You've been awfully quiet." 

"Don't worry yourself about it," Boss said in a voice that seem almost unhearable. "We better get you back to your place before your girl starts worrying." 

They arrived at a white bridge. Below it the creek was glistening from the reflection of the bright night sky and almost made the creek seemed silver. "Oh. Look over there, Boss!" Bijou was pointing with excitement. 

"Huh, where?" 

"Down in the creek. Look, it's fabulous!" For the first time in their lives Bijou and Boss came across a white swan slowly waddling by in the creek. "Well, I'll be," said Boss. "And look how close it iz. Maybe purrhaps we can get a ride on it." 

"I dunno Bijou-BIJOU!" Boss was shocked to see that Bijou jumped off to bridge but she safely landed on the swan's back. True, the swimming swan was startled but it gained control again a moment later as if he didn't feel anything. 

"Come on, Boss. Don't you want to go fer a ride?" Bijou called out to him. "I guess so," said Boss and he made a leap hoping to land on the swan. But the swan was a little to far out of reach and instead of his back, Boss landed on the swan's tail! he grabbed hold of the tail to avoid falling in the water but the swan began to panic and started to splash around flapping out his wings. 

"Whoa! Whoa! WHOA! AH!" cried Boss as he tried to hold on. 

"Wheee!" Bijou squealed with delight. 

The swan had gained control and was swimming again. Both Boss and Bijou got to settle down on the swan's back. 

"Do you mind if we wait for tomorrow to return," Bijou said and she gave a big yawn. "I'm getting awfully sleepy again." 

"That's fine. You can bunk back at the clubhouse again," Boss drew a smirk on his face. "That is of course, if you don't mind bunking with Snoozer again." Boss was surprised that even said this himself. He wasn't thinking about doing anything funny, he just needed a witty, humorous remark to cheer himself up. 

"Why I don't mind at all," said Bijou. "He's such a quiet sleeper. I cood barely hear him snore when I slept." 

* * *

"Laura? Is your room cleaned," Mrs. Haruna called up to her daughter. 

"It's all ready," Laura called back. Laura was rolling out an extra mattress as Hamtaro looked on from his cage. The Hams decided to go home to grieve their lost. _'I wonder what happened to Boss?' _thought Hamtaro. _'He's a very emotional guy. This must be 10x worse for him.'___

When Laura was done she went over to Hamtaro's cage with sadness in her eyes. "Maria and her family are staying with us until her house is fixed. I wish there was something I could do to cheer her up, but it'll be too hard knowing that Bijou died. I wouldn't know what I would do if I ever truely lost you, Hamtaro." The door bell rang. "That must be them. We'll come back up after dinner." Laura went downstairs leaving Hamtaro in the quietness of the room.   
  



	6. Chapter Six

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Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disclaima: If owned them, I'd be in jail right now

Chapter Six

Bijou slept soundly, but Boss couldn't bear a single moment's rest. She would be going home tomorrow. Their wonderful moments together, minus any other hamster would be forgotten by Bijou. But last night was such a wonderful night for Boss. He wasn't afraid to show his other sides in front of Bijou, alone. And she was happy. Her exact words before she went into Boss's room to sleep were "I had ze wonderful time with zyou, Boss."

The clock in his living room ticked as he sat in the chair, thinking…how would he get Bijou to remember their time together. More importantly, would he ever have the chance to confess his feelings? Boss was so entrance by Bijou last night. He never had any chance to consider such an opportunity.

Looking down at Snoozer, he realized the hour would soon come when all the hamsters would be around him begging for questions, questions that he was too scared to answer. And then there was Hamtaro! Something inside him told him that Bijou had more respect for Hamtaro than she would ever have for himself. Boss didn't hate Hamtaro but ever since he moved into the neighborhood, he seemed to become the more popular one. Plus, Boss felt that the formation of the Ham Club has invaded any will of privacy with Bijou. But, the club had brought him closer to her as well.

With too much on his mind, Boss started developing a headache and a stomachache. Boss gathered his best nuts and seeds and started making breakfast. Cooking made him feel better and he smiled at the idea of making breakfast all fancy and formal for Bijou when she woke up. 

Boss covered the table with his best tablecloth and set the table. In the center, he placed a small sunflower he found not to long ago in the glass vase. And then he heard a door open and a young French yawn. "Good morning, Boss," Bijou said as she sniffed the air. "Oh my, iz this breakfast?"

"Yup," said Boss with lifted spirits. "It's my special recipe of omelets spiced with sunflower and boiled acorn."

"Oh my, such a delightful treat." Bijou sat down and Boss soon joined. He hated the idea of his only meal with Bijou, alone being quiet. At least it wouldn't be ruined liked the picnic lunch he tried making for her for the museum trip. It was a new recipe he hadn't tried before, and since the museum incident Boss vowed to become a better cook. You wouldn't believed the endless hours he spent watching the Rodent Chef channel and looking though dusty old cooking books.

Hmm…Boss thought to himself. He needed to risk it asking about the breakfast. "Umm…Bijou? How is…the meal?"

"Ze meal?" Bijou asked. "Oh it is good. Oh my Boss. Do you remember the museum? You improved on your cooking I zee."

"You like it? YOU LIKED IT?!!!" Boss jumped out of his chair with excitement and suddenly tripped over in his chair. "Boss?!" Bijou came around the table to Boss's side. "Are you hurt?"

Boss looked up at Bijou with a big smile. "I'm okay, Bijou?"

"You sure, Boss? You're not lying?"

Why was she acting so suspicious? Perhaps he has lied to her too much to get close to her. Was she losing trust in him? "I'm really okay, Bijou?" There was a few moments silence between them. Out of the unconsciousness of his head Boss unintentionally blurted out "Bijou, I have something to tell you."

"Tell me?"

"Yeah, I can't stand holding it in." Boss stood up trying to focus and force the words out of his mouth. With Snoozer still silently asleep, there were no other hamsters to greatly distract them.

The silence disturbed and confused Bijou. So she asked, "What is 'it'?"

"It…that…it…love…you."

"It love you?" Bijou was now more confused than ever.

"I mean, I…love you?"

Boy, this Boss wished he could read Bijou's mind.

"You love me, Boss?"

"I do love you-I mean, we all love you…but-but moreso than anyone. Like love-love you!"

"I am so confused Boss." 

"Zuu-zuu Boss…feeeelings," came the snoring of Snoozer. And Boss became redder than a cherry.

"Oh, Boss. I confez that I have been curious of such feelingz. So you do love me?"

"Yeah," Boss was stressing, shaking, sweating. He was near the point of having a stroke.

"Oh Boss, clam down. Please, it is okay" Bijou tried grabbing on to Boss to clam him. And the moment that Boss felt Bijou's touch…

…he fainted. 


	7. Chapter Seven

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Flicker in My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disclaimer: Enough of these don't-owns!

Chapter Seven

In a few moments Boss barely came back to planet Earth. His vision was blurry and saw a dozen Bijous! "Boss! Boss!" the Bijous called out echoingly.

"Huh? Oh Bijou. My head hurts!"

"I am so zorry Boss."

"What did I say to you? Why am I feeling so shaky."

"Um…I do not know. Oh, it's getting late morning, I should get home now. Please come to, Boss. We shall dices thiese along ze way."

"Alright, alright."

Boss could sense how anxious Bijou was to get back to her home in the hopes that Maria would be there this time. It finally came to Boss about confessing his love to her and that's what caused him to faint. He wasn't bothered by the fact that Bijou didn't give him an immediate response. But the silence they had along their walked really bothered him. Bijou was running toward the hole that would lead them near home, or what was still standing of it anyway.

Bijou crawled up and saw her house in bad shape. The corner of the house that Maria's room was in had it's blacked-burnt framed struggling to remain standing. Half of the house looked semi-decent. The windows were boarded up. Bijou stood looking at her house upsettingly. The wind breeze made it worse.

Boss finally caught up to her and saw the sad look in her eyes. "I waz hoping she wood be here," said Bijou. 

"Well, maybe they're staying someplace for a while," said Boss nervingly. He never had to comfort Bijou alone during a terrible ordeal before.

"Oh it was such a lovely home. I wishe that we cooed move in again." As if being granted her wish a few trucks drove up to the house. Bijou and Boss rushed to get out of the way. The men came out of the car and inspected parts of the house and talking amongst themselves. A few started grabbing tools.

"I think they're working on fixing the house," said Boss.

"That is soo wonderful!" cried Bijou. "Then that means that Maria will come home soon. Boss, I shall wait here for Maria to come. I am sure she may stop by here today."

"Oh, yeah. I hope so too," said Boss who failed to put enthusiasm into his voice. "Um Bijou, about what I said early today. I…uh," Boss realized that his voice was being muffled by the noise of the men working on the house. In his frustration he yelled out "I NEED AN ANSWER!"

"What? An answer?" said Bijou loudly.

"Uh YEAH YEAH ANSWERS ANSWERS!!!" Boss felt confident till he noticed Bijou walking away from Boss. He followed her into a deep bush where the noise would die down. Boss saw Bijou with his back towards him.

"Boss? I do not know what to say about all of this. You're confession of love…"

"Yeah, yeah I know it came as a shock."

Bijou turned to face Boss. "I must be honest with you Boss. Please do not be mad, but I have known about this."

"You have?!" Boss gasped.

"Yes, I could sense it in my little bones and all of ze Hams-Hams had tried to tell me, but I cooed not believe it until you said so yourself, and now you have."

Boss gasped in shock and confusion.

"Boss, there is something you should also know too."

"I'm already overwhelmed here, Bijou."

"But, I must tell you this, so you could understand! Please Boss, understand. This is so hard for me to tell you. I thought about it sometimes if I ever did had to tell you and now that I must…I'm sorry Boss. How can I speak of this to such a wonderful friend who has always been there for me. Who has always wanted me to see how wonderful he was? And I do Boss, I do think you're wonderful and nothing will ever change that. These feelings you have for me. They are your feelings, but they are not mine."

"What are saying Bijou?" Said Boss as Bijou turned back from him again. 

"I am verry sorry, Boss. I do not bear the same feelings in return. So, you zee, you had to know."

Silence…bore between to two. Until Bijou could here Boss mumble something she didn't clearly get but Boss knew what his words were. "…I didn't had to know." Bijou heard rustling and turned around. Boss was gone, she rushed out and saw Boss walking down the street. "Boss! Boss!" Her cries were ignored. She was about to consider going after him when another car was coming onto the driveway. Bijou got out of the way, and looked at who came out. They were, they were…Maria's parents!!! And the back door of the car opened…

and there was Maria!!!! 

The trio of humans went to greet the men working and checked out the progress of the home. Maria went to the opposite side of the damaged house where her room used to be and looked up. The tree that led to the window to her room was no longer there. Bijou ran toward the girl with all the badda badda she had in her. 

Maria turned around to see something small and white run towards her among the grass. "Bijou? BIJOU?!!!!!"

From the outer part of the gate Boss watched the tears flow from Maria's eyes as she bent down to cup Bijou into her hands. A hamster and her human were reunited today. And tomorrow everything would be back together again. Just as destiny intended.

Destiny had never been kind to Boss.

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TBC…don't worry folks!


	8. Chapter Eight

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Flicker In My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disc: _I got some trading cards, but I don't own the Hamtaro gang_

Chapter Eight

Time had passed on so. To everyone, Bijou was alive now. The Hams-Hams resided their meetings at the clubhouse despite the absence of Boss since his love confession to Bijou. Maria's house was near reconstruction. 

Bijou told about what happened to her since the fire. When she got to the part of finally arriving home that day to be reunited with Maria, she stopped. She figured that this was something too personal to share with the group and decided to say that Boss walked her home and Maria found her. A joyous ending for the hams to hear.

Now somewhere unknown, Boss was shivering beneath a ragged blanket. His thoughts were of whether it was wrong to tell Bijou the truth and if the hams would ever miss him.

It was supposed to be spring, but the winds went back and forth on the temperature, and then to all of the hams surprise…it snowed again…in the middle of spring!

For the first time in about a week, Hamtaro was the first to worry about Boss. "Do you know what happened to him after you got home Bijou?"

"No I dew not. I assume that he went home," said Bijou.

"Boss la…Bi…zu…Boss…zay leave fo-ever," snored Snoozer in his sleep.

"Huh?" "What?" No one understood what Snoozer said except for Maxwell. He let out a gasp when he figured it out. "My goodness," he said. "Remember that envelope that was on the door the day we came back here?" he asked everyone.

"You said not to touch it, cuz it was unmarked," said Dexter.

"There maybe something in there that may give us a clue as to where he is." Maxwell began headin towards the clubhouse door.

"I told yas should've open the mail. Lord knows tampering mail is what I do best," said Howdy.

"I thought getting on my nerves was what you did best," said Dexter. Maxwell had already gotten the letter and read it silently with so much shock.

"Why you little-"

"Everyone listen!" Howdy was interrupted by Maxwell. "I hate to tell everyone this, but I'm afraid Boss may have…ran away."

"RAN AWAY?!!!" Everyone asked in shocked.

"It can't be," said Hamtaro. "Let me see that." Hamtaro got the letter and began to read it out loud.

__

"Dear Hams,

In case you eventually resume your meetings here, I have let Snoozer in charge of making sure the clubhouse was open. I am leaving now, I don't know how long I will be. I must warn you though, I may not be coming back. Because of what I did to myself, I need some time to think, and forgive. Therefore, in the likely event that I may never come back, I give my entire clubhouse to you, the Hams who deserved it a whole lot more than I do.

Best Wishes,

Boss"

"That's terrible. We can't have a clubhouse without Boss," said Sandy.

"Yeah," said Hamtaro. "He taught us a lot of things we would never know as house hams. We gotta find him you guys!!!"

"I wish it were easy," said Maxwell. "But all of us know little of Boss outside of our hams meetings. I mean, where would he go to be by himself besides here?"

"I dunno, but we gotta bring him back. It's Boss we're talking about!"

"Should we split up then?" said Oxnard.

"I wouldn't have thought it any other way. We'll search all over town if we haveto."

"Yeah." "Let's do it." "Bring Boss home." "Oookweeeeeeeee!" The Hams began piling out the door to begin there search. Snoozer stayed in his usual spot. Maxwell grabbed a map of the city. "We should also check with Jingle and Elder-Ham and ask if they have seen him," he said gathering his materials.

Hamtaro and Oxnard were the last hams piling out. Bijou was right behind them and she tapped Hamatro on the shoulder. "What is it Bijou," he asked.

"I'm not sure, but I dew believe dere is a place where we might find Boss. I didn't think it would be a good idea to tell you without Boss's approval, but there are a few things you must know. Can we talk privately?"

"Sure, Oxnard do you mind waiting in the clubhouse for a few more minutes?"

"You guys can get a room, but I'm heading straight for Boss's kitchen," said Oxnard running to the kitchen happily. Hamtaro and Bijou went to Boss's room to talk in private.

"Oh Bijou," said Boss through visible cold breathes. "This was a horrible mistake. I'm so sorry…" 

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A/N My apologies for not really going anywhere with this chapter. This is originally where I got stuck with this story in planing. I'm thinking about taking some dark turns with this, but hopefully the rating will stay. J 


	9. Chapter Nine

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Flicker In My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disc: _I don't own them…or do I? Hmm…_

Chapter Nine

Bijou led Oxnard and Hamtaro through the darkness of the underground. Hamtaro and Oxnard especially were shaking nervously as the tunnels got deeper and darker. Oxnard peed three times along the way (yes, he was THAT nervous). "Where in the world are you taking us?!" he screamed nervously.

"We are almoste vere," said Bijou holding the flashlight to see through the tunnels. Finally a little light was hanging on a wall. "Dis is ite," said Bijou and she shyly knocked on the door. "Pass word," said a gruff voice.

"'Muck hamsterrr," said Bijou. There was a lengthy pause and then the door crept open. As soon as all three entered there was a more massive silence than when Bijou was first brought in there. Every single hamster had their eyes on them. One of them even dropped their glass of nut beer. "House hamsters, again?" muttered one hamster quietly.

"I think I need to go potty again," Oxnard whispered to Hamtaro nervously.

"Bijou, you're back. And I see you have a few friends with you?" Myra approached them suspiciously.

"Myra, my friends and I arr looking fer Boss. Has he ben here?" asked Bijou.

"Well, I do believe he was here a couple of days ago saying goodbye to everyone. Said he was going on a very long trip. He didn't say much else but Pocko said he was talking to Chief most of the night."

"Who is this Chief?" asked Hamtaro.

Myra pointed to the gruffed big cream hamster at the bar having a drink. "He's right over there. I'd reckon he knew where Boss went off to, but I don't think he's in the mood for communicating with house hams."

Hamtaro was confused "house hams". "Oh I'm zorree," said Bijou. "Dis is a field ham's clubhouse. I should've told you."

"Well, we gotta try, guys. Boss could be needing right at this very moment." Hamtaro went up to the bar and sat on a stool next to Chief. Chief remained calm and quiet at the sight of Hamtaro. Then, Pocko who was drying some glasses stopped what he was doing and went up to Hamtaro. "What will it be house-ham?" he asked.

"Do you have any water?" asked Hamtaro.

"Water," muttered Pocko. "House hams are such cheapskates," muttered Pocko as he went to get his glass.

Hamtaro nervously looked at Chief how had now fallen asleep at the bar. Hamatro decided best to poke him. But Oxanrd and Bijou who were sitting next to them were getting scared. Chief let out a large grunt and a burp, then looked at Hamtaro. "guh?" muttered Chief.

"You're Boss's friend right?" asked Hamtaro

"Bleh," said Chief as he began to sit up. "I knew you wouldn't just waltz in here for a drink, being house hams you are. Oh, it's you Bijou. Boss has been talking to me about you. Now what do ya want and make it short."

"We're looking fer Boss," said Bijou. "Did he tell you vere he was going before he left here?"

"Well, if you know him that well. Boss wanted me to recommend for him a place to hide from the world and never be seen by ham eyes again. I told him that you might as well be a rat. That's when he asked me if there are such a thing as city hams." Chief began to guffaw. "City hams? That's crazy talk. You're talking about rats whose tails got cut off. Then he told me that he no longer wanted to see anything that reminded him of his life and how he wished he were someone else. Then I fell asleep drunk on my hide and he was gone."

"I guess will never find him," said Oxnard as he watches Chief fall asleep again.

"Wait a second," said Hamtaro. "So he mentioned something about the city. We have ourselves an angle. Let's get back to Maxwell. Hamtaro, Oxnard, and Bijou were making their way out when Bijou heard something she wished she hadn't heard. It was a gruff voice from the bar saying, "I told ya she would be too good for him. I tried to warn him too." Bijou turned around to see Chief fully awake and talking to Pocko.

All the hams returned to the clubhouse that evening. Maxwell mapped out parts of downtown. "This search could get more dangerous seeing that we may have to search alleyways. The rodents that reside in these downtown areas have been known to be twice as large as a well built ham-ham."

"Aiyee," said Oxnard. 

"We're gonna have to stick together on this. Everyone go home and sleep on it. I want anyone who is still willing to go to report here first thing in the morning so we can get this over with." All the worried hams were dismissed from the clubhouse. Hamtaro and Bijou were sadly walking home together with Oxnard trailing behind. "It's my fault," said Bijou.

"you can't blame Boss for being so emotional about this," said Hamtaro. "You know what I think. I think if he really cares about you, and we all know he does, than he's sure to come back.

"Really," said Bijou.

"Yeah"

"Oh, Hamtaro you always know what to say." Bijou gives Hamtaro a peck on the cheek as they arrive in front of Bijou's. Hamatro's coat turned a nervous red.

Somewhere, Boss was looking out at a very beautiful sunset. Night came, and white was reflected in the water. White reminding him of Bijou.


	10. It's almost over!

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Sorry for not updating in a while. Hang in there, the roller coaster ride is almost over. This chapter is kinda awkward cuz I haven't updated in over a month and there's no dialogue. The final chapter or two (I'm not sure yet) will come around much sooner. I love you all, reviewers and flamers. You really made this an enjoyable fic!

Flicker In My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disc: _Dude, get real!_

Chapter Ten

That night, Bijou could not sleep. Her thoughts were on the guilt she felt inside. Her honest words had pushed Boss away…to somewhere she wished she knew. Suddenly knew thoughts began to invade her mind, her dearest and closest friend Hamtaro. With him, her feelings belonged. Perhaps this was why she couldn't feel anything for Boss. Her heart already belonged to someone else. But in time, it came to Bijou's realization that Hamtaro had no knowledge of Bijou's feelings whatsoever, and he may never know. Now…she understood. She finally understood how Boss must've felt when he confessed those words to her. It made Bijou want to cry but she try to fight the tears. She had to sleep if they were gonna have any luck looking for Boss in the morning.

That night she had a dream. It was a very quiet dream, and relaxing. She must've been in someone else's mind because she wasn't able to talk. She wanted to say to herself how beautiful the scenery was that she was in. 

It was the shore at sunrise. Did morning come already? The red sun was approaching over the city landscapes infront of here view. She was awfully small compared to those boats that were parked near by. The sand beneath her toes was tingly. She turned her head over to the waters to her left. A classic sailboat designed in a Japanese style was the only ship sailing. Suddenly, Bijou began to develop a yearning to go out to sea. She built a stool out of some sand and sat on it to watch the boat in the early morning. As she finally got to settle down, she realized that the air was becoming misty and foggy. It felt awfully cold…she wished she had a jacket.

Another thought struck her, or perhaps the dream was changing. This time she closed her eyes looking out at the water and the moment her eyes were opened the ground began to move. She looked out. Bijou was on the boat in the water! But why was she feeling sick? She had to get to the edge of the ship but it was swaying too much for her to move. The edge of ship was farther and farther away from her. Bijou was literally climbing the long deck to reach the deck. Behind her she felt the water crashing onto the ship's deck as if she was about to be swallowed whole.

Wasn't she in a situation like this before? She remembered, Boss was taking her out to see determined that he was over his seasickness. She had to admit the results of their trip together were drastic but now that she knew how Boss felt about her she finally understood.

The memory shook her awake from her dream. The sun was bare but its light was visible. Bijou looked at the clock, then over to her sleeping master Maria. She seemed so much happier these days. Bijou knew that Maria missed her very much and now she couldn't be happier to have he hamster in her life again. The clock said 5:33. Maria sets her alarm to get ready for school at 7:05. Bijou climbed out of her cage. She had a while before Maria would wake and greet Bijou with her beautiful smile and not too long before she began searching for Boss with the others. Still, Bijou wondered if she had enough time to check one place first, just before they began searching.

Sometimes a dream can consume your thoughts. It was happening to Bijou now, as if she knew exactly where Boss was at that very moment.

~*~*~*~*~

The sand felt exactly like she knew it would. She was tired but she had to run if she wanted to get to the shore and back in time before Maria woke up. She crawled on her fours along the beachy shoreline. It was small to a human but to her and perhaps the other Hams, it was an endless beach that reached to the opposite end of Japan. She kept her eyes opened but found nothing but sand. She could see the red sun rising higher above the city. It was time to go back now. She looked at the sea and sighed. 

Of the few things she knew about Boss, she knew that Boss would not lose hope in overcoming his seasickness. He was known to be a bluffer, but Bijou knew now…it was all to win her heart.

Bijou sighed. There was no more time left to see if her dream was real. She turned around in the direction of home. It wasgetting foggy now. But her eyes could not be fooled…just a few feet from her, deep in the fog was a figure well built and walking. She couldn't tell if the figure was walking towards her or away from her, so she ran (badda-badda-badda) towards the shadows. 

Her eyes were now moist with tears as the vision she hoped for became real. Now she stood face to face with Boss in his trenchcoat. At that moment Bijou realized that she didn't bother to brush her fur or put any ribbons on before coming out to the beach.

But for this occasion, such a thing no longer mattered to her.


	11. now we reach the end sniff, sniff

**__**

Last chapter! All I haveta say is please read the closing remarks by clicking on that button.

After you read and review this chapter of course.

Flicker In My Life

By Fantasy Cat

Disc: _The Last Time: You know who I don't own. _

Chapter Eleven

Upon seeing her, Boss couldn't help but stare. How in the world did she know where he was? He let her come to her, despite the voice in his head that screamed for him to run away out into the ocean. Out there love problems would never exist. Who cares if he still had seasickness?

But now, she was here standing in front of him. Her white coat shined with the help of the morning sunrise behind her.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked her.

"Boss, I've known you forever, just like you know me," she said trying to reach for his paw but Boss kept himself away.

"I don't know you Bijou," said Boss. "I guess I don't know anything about your hearts' desire."

"Come home, Boss," she said it straight out. Boss said nothing on his expressionless face. He only walked closer to the watery edge of the beach. Bijou followed him.

"You've been der for me so much. And you always surprize me in a charming way. You saved my life, Boss! Remember the museum incident? Look 'ere. I have every single act of kindness you have given me inside my heart. I know you've made mistakes in ze past. And if you don't come home, it will be one of dem!"

Boss wanted to turn his back to her again, but he had already upset her so much. Perhaps this is what she wanted more than anything now, for him to look into her eyes and truly see how upset she was. "You're right, Bijou. I've made a lot of mistakes. This is the worst one. I want to go back, dear Bijou. I want to back to the way things were before, and correct those mistakes."

"And you can, Boss. Come home, and everyzing will be normal again. The Hams-Hams are in need of you. Dey miss their friend…and I'm missing ze best friend I ever had."

"Really, your best friend?"

"You always wanted to help me make my dreams come true. All I want is for everyzing to be back to normal. Dat would be my favorite dream come true."

Boss turned his face slightly to the ocean. There he stood with the flicker of his life. She could never be his, but still…maybe he could give her something more…maybe there was something more than a silly romantic fling could ever give Bijou.

"Bijou…" he turned to her weakly. Seeing the smile on his gruffy face, Bijou already knew the answer and rushed into his arms. She adored his bear-like hugs. "I'm so sorry, Bijou," he began to cry. "I could never abandon you. From now on, I'm gonna stay right here. I'll always be there for you."

As quickly as they left, a small wind brushed away the two tiny pairs of tracks on the sand that traveled toward Maria's house.

Everyone became cheered Boss's homecoming. With the exception of some wisecrack's from Howdy, no one decided to question where he has been. 

"I felt awful about leaving you guys," said Boss.

"There's no Ham-Ham club without you Boss," said Hamtaro.

Nothing made Boss happier right now than being home again and for seeing on their faces that perhaps they did forgive him for all his past mistakes.

Boss sat back in his old chair and watched the Ham-Ham Clubhouse spring to life, something he never appreciated until now. He noticed Bijou talking to Hamtaro. And saw the two give each other a hug.

"They look great together, don't they Snoozer? Looks like they might hook up soon," Boss leaned over to his sleepy friend.

"Ah…just as it should be…zu…zu."

The gruff field hamster may still have sparks of jealousy and pain. But he smiled as he watched Bijou with Hamtaro. Because he knew it made his "flicker" happy.

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THE END AUTHOR'S NOTEnext page


	12. Closing Statements By The Author

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Greetings all of you,

First I would like to say thank you for reading and reviewing my story. This happened to unexpectedly be one of my more popular fics. I'm sorry that I took 10 months to complete this fic. This is the longest that I ever did on such a very short fic, and I'm gonna try to write sooner and stuff yo.

Now the point of this is to answer the crazy reviews I've been getting:

I admit that I was not expecting, though I should have, and all out war between Bijou-and-Hamtaro people versus Bijou-and-Boss people. I think I made the mistake of saying that this was a Boss-and-Bijou fic because in the end, Bijou didn't get with anyone. It's supposed to be like a big episode that could've existed.

So despite the flames I've been getting, I actually had fun watching this war from the sidelines, (please don't kill me for saying that). I would've posted an A-Note in the middle of the fic to resolve this "war" earlier, but I really didn't want to spoil the fic.

Last, but not least. Why the hell did I write this fic? Honestly folks, you gotta admit that Boss really cares and loves Bijou even though he can screw up and be a little greedy about it. It kind of bothers me when Boss is portrayed as an antagonist on the show, when really he's just a gruff rough-looking ham seeking love and respect from all the other hams. So why not feel sorry for Boss?

Well, that's the end. Thanx for reading.

**__**

--Fantasy Cat


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